At any given moment, millions of people listen to the radio as either an activity in and of itself or to complement an activity that they are already engaged in, for example, driving. Unfortunately, many are dissatisfied with traditional radio because nearly half of all conventional radio systems broadcast in one of only three formats: country music; contemporary music; and news. In addition to the limited number of choices in programming, listeners are also constantly barraged with commercials. In some markets, listeners will hear up to eighteen minutes of commercials each hour. Thus, the limited choices and frequent commercials cause listeners to desire a superior system for receiving broadcasts that feature a variety of genres, with limited interruptions from commercials. One solution is satellite radio. Satellite radio can broadcast numerous channels of varied programming to receivers simultaneously. The producers of satellite radio can air these broadcasts with minimal commercial interruptions, thus enhancing the listeners' experience, such as the satellite radio service to be provided by Sirius Satellite Radio of New York, N.Y.
Having many radio channels provided by satellite signaling vastly improves a listener's enjoyment of radio. However, the multitude of channels may render it difficult for a listener to constantly scan and flip through all channels to select a program he would like to hear. Thus, it is desirable to have a system that allows a listener to create a playlist that contains selections of programming or types of programming he wants to hear, and to have the system automatically seek and tune in the selections listed in the playlist.